MTA aims to have railroad fully restored by Monday after LIRR derailment: officials

QUEENS, N.Y. (PIX11) – The MTA aims to have railroad operations fully restored by Monday morning’s rush hour following the LIRR train derailment in Queens on Thursday, officials said.

MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said "tremendous progress" has been made in the effort to restore normal operations, but more work will continue through the weekend.

"The railroad is operating this weekend. We've been able to provide close to full service the last couple nights," Lieber said at a press conference Friday. "We’re continuing to run a plan for a full and complete operation on Monday morning."

On Thursday, eight train cars on a Hempstead Branch LIRR train derailed at 175th Street and 93rd Avenue near the Hillside station, about half a mile east of Jamaica, Queens, officials said. The train derailed around 11:12 a.m. after leaving from Grand Central, officials said.

There were around 100 passengers aboard the train, authorities said. Thirteen people suffered injuries, and no one died in the incident, FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh said on Thursday.

"Nine of those are minor [injuries], two of them are moderate, and two are more serious," Kavanagh said. "All of them are stable at this time and all of them are going to be OK."

The cause of the derailment was still under investigation on Friday. However, Lieber said the train’s speed was not a factor in causing the derailment.

Lieber said all eight train cars that derailed are now back on the rail, but the derailment caused damage to rail infrastructure that still needs to be repaired.

"There's 1,600 feet of track that has been obliterated," Lieber said. "There's 900 feet of electric traction power, the third rail has to be replaced. There are 400 concrete railroad ties that were wiped out that now need to be replaced. That's a 24/7 operation that's going to continue through the weekend so that we can have the railroad back in absolute perfect working order for the Monday rush."

Service delays on the Port Jefferson, Ronkonkoma, Oyster Bay, and Hempstead branches of the LIRR continued Friday morning.

Eastbound Hempstead Branch trains will continue to bypass Hillside, Hollis and Queens Village until repairs are made, officials said.

Check the TrainTime app and mta.info for the latest service updates.

PIX11's Erin Pflaumer and Michelle Ross contributed to this report.